Six hoax 999 calls a day put lives in danger

HOAXERS are plaguing the Scottish Ambulance Service by making up to six malicious calls a day to its emergency number.

HOAXERS are plaguing the Scottish Ambulance Service by making up to six malicious calls a day to its emergency number.

New figures show time wasters rung 999 more than 6,100 over the last three years.

The statistics, unearthed by the Scottish Conservative Party, include 2,294 incidents where an ambulance was dispatched with paramedics only to discover the call was a hoax on arrival at the scene.

Jackson Carlaw, health spokesman, demanded tough punishments for those who put lives at risk by the "loathsome practice".

He added the level of hoax call-outs was "disgusting" and continued: "These figures are absolutely despicable.

"No one would be surprised if there were a handful of hoax calls from bored teenagers but the sheer scale of this suggests a problem far more deep-rooted."

He made his comments after figures released under freedom of information rules revealed that over the period 2011-12 to 2013-14 there were 6,102 malicious calls to 999 for an ambulance.

While the level of hoax calls has continued to drop from 2,422 in 2011-12 to 1,732 last year, they still presented a "huge headache for call-handlers and managers". Mr Carlaw said: "Twice a day, ambulance vehicles are actually sent out on these jobs under blue light only to find upon arrival it was all a prank.

"That's not only a massive waste of resources but it's putting at risk those who genuinely need the urgent attention of an ambulance.

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We have to ensure stiff punishments are in place for those who are caught engaging in this loathsome practice

Jackson Carlaw, health spokesman

"We have to ensure stiff punishments are in place for those who are caught engaging in this loathsome practice, which would deter others from embarking on similar behaviour in future."

A Scottish Government spokesman said the ambulance service dealt with around 700,000 calls a year with around half-a-million receiving emergency response.

He added that hoax callers played Russian roulette with people's lives and continued: "Our ambulance crews work day in and day out responding to emergency calls across the country and anyone who calls 999 without a genuine need is potentially putting lives at risk by tying up valuable resources that could be needed to respond to a life-threatening call.

"While the majority of people in Scotland use our emergency services responsibly, we take any acts of malicious or nuisance-calling very seriously and fully support our police, prosecutors and courts to hold those responsible to account."

The Scottish Ambulance Service makes every effort to identify calls which may be linked to mental health issues rather than intentional maliciousness.

However, a spokesman said pranksters were reported to the police where appropriate while in the cases of mental health problems relevant agencies are advised for appropriate care.